𝙸𝚁𝚁𝙸𝚃𝙰𝙱𝙻𝙴. ➪ 𝙴. 𝙿𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚎

𝚝𝚠𝚘

Susan and her parents returned to England at the end of the month. Peter got the train back to London from the Professor's house. Lucy and Edmund came home from Cambridge with Eustace and their Aunt and Uncle. Freddie came over from the other side of London with his fiancée. All for Elmer's funeral.

Phillis stood with her hand intwined with Edmund's. She, like Susan and Lucy, was dressed in a little black dress. The boys each had a suit on, some of Elmer's army friends in their uniforms. Phillis looked at her slightly heeled shoes, not daring to look at the empty coffin. Tears trickled down her narrow cheeks. Virginia stood on the other side of her daughter, her handkerchief pressed to her face. Mr and Mrs. Pevensie watched on in horror at the sight of the wooden coffin, which contained no body, but would of been occupied by a nineteen year old boy. He was only a boy. Eustace stood in between Lucy and his parents, the eldest Pevensies stood by their parents. It was a rare sight to see Peter crying, but he was.

Kind words of Elmer were spoken by friends and family. Susan had her face pressed into her father's shoulder, longing for it all to be a horrible nightmare.

Once the funeral was over, the families all split off. Freddie and Rose, his fiancée, stood by Virginia and Phillis. They were talking about anything to get their minds off of Elmer. "So, when's the wedding?" Phillis asked the happy couple.
"Maybe at the end of the year. We don't want to rush into it," Rose replied.
The Pevensies emerged from the church with the Scrubbs. They slowly walked towards Elmer's
family. Phillis was the first to pull Susan into a tight hug. They both needed it. "How are you doing?" Su asked the girl.
"As good as can be expected, I suppose," Phillis shrugged, stepping back from the brunette.
Virginia and Helen shared a sweet hug. Helen couldn't begin to fathom what her best friend must be feeling. She'd lost both her son and her husband.
"It'll get better," said Mr. Pevensie, looking between Phillis and Virginia.
"Maybe," sighed Phillis.
Edmund hugged Phillis close, kissing her lightly. Everyone knew about them and their blooming relationship. It was only expected that they'd share a comforting kiss on the day of Elmer's funeral.

Some soldiers, friends of Elmer's, approached the two families. They hugged Virginia and apologised for the loss of her darling son. When everyone was gone, the families stood in silence for a moment. It wasn't silent at all really; the birds tweeted and the trees blew in the wind. The sound of footsteps on the gravel snapped them out of their moments of silence. "Are we too late?" the familiar voice asked.
It was the Professor and Mrs. Macready.
"I'm afraid so, Digory," smiled Virginia. She appreciated the thought of at least coming to see the family.
"A terrible shame," Macready said glumly.
She looked to have real, raw emotion that wasn't anger on her face.
"You've all grown," said the Professor. "Especially you!"
He looked at Lucy, who giggled at the attention. It was true, though, all the children had grown since the last time they stayed with Professor Kirke. The two youngest, Phillis and Lucy, didn't look anything like they did three years ago. "Anyway," said the Professor, "we thought we'd best come and pay our respects. I do hope you're all coping okay. Or at least as best you can."
"Thank you, Digory," Helen smiled.

The funeral was nice, if that's the right word. Everyone who has ever cared about Elmer was there. Elmer always was popular, though, as he was a particularly lovely boy. He never wanted to hurt anyone, maybe that's why it was so ironic that he decided to join the RAF. He had a marvellous life, mind. He got to see things that boys and girls his age could never believe in. He got to view humanity from a different perspective. He got to rule a kingdom, for heaven's sake. And, like Eustace, he came out better because of his adventures in Narnia. He got to live an extra fifteen years, which would make him somewhere in his thirties now, so he did live longer than his family thought. But, just as he always wanted, he was with his father again.